


You jump, I jump

by QianLan



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Angst, Anxiety, Despair, Injury, M/M, Mission Gone Wrong, Mutual Pining, Prison, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-21 14:18:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,555
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12459552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QianLan/pseuds/QianLan
Summary: When a mission goes wrong and they’re both facing what might be their last few hours alive, Poe and Finn try to deal with the realities of what it means to be a soldier in love in the middle of a war.COMPLETE





	1. Stupid Risks

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Zoe_Dameron](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zoe_Dameron/gifts).



> This is for the delightful Zoe_Dameron.
> 
>  
> 
> I've tagged this for torture, and while that largely happens off-screen, it isn't entirely off-screen, so please be mindful of the tags.

 

 

Finn understood that they were in the middle of a war, and he understood that technically, he had no grounds for being upset—Poe was his friend and his roommate; that was all.  Yet, Poe sauntering in after another mission had gone south with a bruise on his temple and stitches in his arm set Finn off.

 

Well, _no_ , if the truth were told, it wasn’t the injuries so much as it was Dameron’s devil-may-care attitude.

 

“You what,” Finn asked, as Poe pulled his boots on after a quick shower.

 

“I jumped out of the speeder.  Figured they wouldn’t be stupid enough to try and follow that.”

 

Finn’s mouth was hanging open.  “You were betting on them not being as _stupid_ as you?”

 

Poe cocked his head.  “I was betting on them not being as resourceful or willing to think outside of the box.”

 

“You said stupid.”

 

“It’s a figure of speech.”

 

Finn raised his eyebrow and shook his head, walking out the door.  Poe rushed to follow.  “I don’t get it.  Why are you so pissed?”

 

“I’m not pissed.  Who says I’m pissed,” Finn said, speeding up a bit on his way to command _.  I’m kriffing livid._

“Oh, so that’s just your normal face then.”

 

Finn shot Poe an annoyed glance.  “Perfectly normal.”

 

“Yeah, right,” Poe said.  “You’re pissed.”

 

“And you’re stupid.  We make the perfect pair.”  Before Poe could answer with a quip of his own, Finn stopped and turned.  “I just don’t get your kriffing death wish.”

 

“Who says I have a death wish?  I was trying to get away from a bunch of Stormtroopers!  That’s the opposite of a death wish!”

 

“You got three stitches!”

 

“Yeah, and you have a lightsaber scar running up your back!  I don’t think you should be giving anyone lectures on staying safe in combat situations.”

 

“That was different.”

 

“Like hell it was,” Poe said.

 

Jess walked by.  “Trouble in paradise?”

 

“Shut up, Testor,” Poe said.

 

“No, Pava,” Finn said.

 

She laughed.  “Right.”  She nodded down the hall.  “You’re going to be late.”

 

“This isn’t over,” Poe whispered, turning to follow her.

 

“No, it isn’t,” Finn hissed.

 

**# # # #**

 

General Organa looked around the conference table, noting that Dameron and Finn both looked tense.  Typically, these days, the two of them seemed to operate in one of two modes—sickeningly in love (and completely unaware that it was mutually requited) or getting on each other’s nerves. 

 

 _Great_ , she thought, _today we have annoyed and prickly._

 

Thankfully, these little mood swings never seemed to affect their performance in the field.

 

_At least not yet._

 

She took a deep breath and nodded to the holo-projection in front of her.  “We just received intel that leads us to believe that the Order may be targeting the planet Hargeeva and in particular, the Arginall Refinery here,” she said zooming in on the map, "as part of a general campaign of harassment in the sector." She frowned. "We want your team,” she said to Poe, “to go in and lay cover so that Finn’s team can disable the refinery's processors and help evacuate the civilians.”  She sighed.  “This can’t be a large operation.  We’re already spread thin as it is.  And, this needs to be a quick in and out.  If there are any signs that it’s going to turn into something bigger, I want you to get out of there.  Understood?”

 

The group nodded.

 

“Okay, you leave in two hours.  Dismissed.”

 

Leia didn’t miss how Poe and Finn exited through separate doors. 

 

She closed her eyes and shook her head.  _Could you two just talk already?_  

 

She tried not to think too hard about those early days with Han, when talking about her feelings seemed like the last thing a sane woman would do.

 

 _Of course, no one has ever accused me of being sane,_ she thought with a smile.

 

**# # # #**

 

Finn was leading a small group of Pathfinders into the refinery to disable a set of processors that they feared the Order were going to try steal, or worse yet, sabotage in hopes of causing a meltdown.  Everything had gone well until one of the components blew up.  Finn’s people were able to contain the damage, but at that point, they were dealing with fire, casualties, and panic, which meant, of course, that’s when the Order showed up.

 

For a solid twenty minutes, it was utter chaos, trying to get as many beings out of the area as possible.  Thankfully, Poe’s team was making it hard for any Stormtrooper transports to land.

 

Still, the Resistance’s luck couldn’t hold forever...

 

Finn and his soldiers had just finished loading the last of the civilians onto one of their transports when a group of Stormtroopers appeared on the scene.  As the Pathfinders held the troopers off, Finn ordered the transport to leave, stranding him and three other Pathfinders.

 

Poe’s voice crackled in over the comms.  “You have a plan, buddy?”

 

“Yeah, Dameron.  The plan is for you and the pilots to get those beings to safety.”

 

“And just leave you behind?”

 

“Yes.  You remember the General’s orders.”

 

“Kriff the orders, Finn.”

 

“No, flyboy.  We can take care of ourselves.”  With that Finn nodded to the other Pathfinders and took off running into the forest.

 

**# # # #**

 

If pressed, Poe would admit that he had a tendency towards being reckless, but, he would add, _it’s always for a good reason._

 

Shooting at Kylo Ren on Jakku?  _The man had just killed Lor San Tekka._

 

Flying into a burning hole in the side of a giant superweapon?  _Someone had to do it._

 

Ordering the pilots to evacuate and then landing his ship to go looking for Finn and the missing Pathfinders? 

 

He didn’t have a good response for that.

 

Deep in his gut, he knew the reason he was disobeying orders and running into a fight there was no way he could win, but in the heat of the moment, he was trying to ignore the little voice in his head that was telling him why he felt butterflies in his stomach when Finn was near and why he hated that look Finn got when Finn thought he did something reckless and stupid.

 

Which was a lot.

 

 _He’d probably be giving me that look now_ , Poe thought as he ran into the forest towards what sounded like fighting.

 

Finn and two Pathfinders were holding off about ten Stormtroopers.  Poe could see the body of another Pathfinder on the ground.  He said a quick prayer for them and jumped into the fray.

 

He managed to get off a lucky shot, sending one trooper down.  “Yeah!”

 

The last thing he remembered was Finn turning and giving him a really pissed off look.

 

**# # # #**

 

Collins had gotten hit as soon as they’d entered the clearing.  Finn grit his teeth.  _It’s my damn fault.  Should’ve moved faster.  Should’ve known that component was going to blow._

 

There were twelve Stormtroopers shooting at them. 

 

An’shul got one of them.  Then, Finn got another.  He took a deep breath.  _We can do this.  Just got to get these guys off our backs and go hide out in the jungle._

 

“An’shul, Trini, fall back,” he yelled.  They started to move.  Then, there was a shot across the way and another Stormtrooper fell to the ground.

 

Finn glanced across the clearing and for a moment, he thought he was imagining things.  _You have to be kriffing kidding me!_

_Come on!_  

 

He gave Dameron an annoyed glance just in time to see one of the troopers stun him.  “Poe,” he screamed, jumping from his cover, and realizing, a second too late, what he’d done.

 

 


	2. The Cells

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mind the tags...

 

 

Finn’s eyes flew open.  He did a quick mental inventory.  _Hands free.  Legs free.  Not on a ship._   He looked over and groaned.  _Holding cell.  Planetside._

 

He tried to catalogue possible First Order outposts in the system and came up blank.  _Why aren’t I on a ship?_

_Kriff, why am I still alive?_

 

He pushed himself up from the metal plank they’d put him on.  The cell was small, damp.  The only light was filtering in from slots cut out of the door.  He leaned forward.  Outside there was a brightly-lit hall and more cells.

 

Somewhere, in the distance, Finn heard a blood-curdling scream.  And then another.

 

He shivered _.  Please say that’s not one of my people._

 

There was a yell, followed by coughing and the faintest sounds of a fist making contact. 

 

Finn leaned back against the wall of the cell.   _Please don’t be one of mine_.  He licked his lips and closed his eyes, trying to block the sounds out, but he couldn’t help but listen.

 

Eventually, the screaming stopped.  Finn didn’t know whether that meant the torturers had grown tired or their victim had died.  He wrapped his arms around himself and shivered.

 

**# # # #**

 

Finn jerked awake.  For a moment, he couldn’t remember where he was.  Then, he could hear Stormtroopers dragging someone into the next cell.  When the door hissed shut, he crawled forward and then waited until he couldn’t hear their boots against the walkway anymore.  He called out, “Hey!  You!  Buddy?  Who are you?  Can you tell me anything about this place?”

 

There was a noise in the other cell, someone clearing their throat and spitting.  “Kriff,” the being said.

 

Finn knew that voice.  “Poe?  Poe, is that you?”

 

“Look, buddy, I just want to sleep.”  Poe’s voice sounded rough.

 

Finn then realized who had been screaming.  _Oh fuck._   He closed his eyes, willing himself not to cry.  “I just want to know how you are.”

 

There was a sharp breath.  “Great,” Poe said.  “What’s it to you?”

 

 _He doesn’t know it’s me._   That stung.  “It’s Finn, idiot.”

 

“Sure,” Poe said.  “Just like it was FN-2187 in there beating the crap out of me.”

 

Finn scrambled to the door, pressing against it.  “What?  What in the kriff happened?”

 

“Like I said, I just want to sleep.”  Poe’s voice sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

 

“Poe?  Poe, you gotta believe me.  It’s me.  It’s really me.”

 

Poe gave a mirthless chuckle.  “You don’t know how much I want to believe that, buddy.”  He sighed.  “Please just let me sleep.”

 

“Yeah,” Finn said.  He turned and leaned against the cell door, straining to listen, but he wasn’t close enough.  He drew his knees up to his body, curling up on himself.  “Night, Poe,” he said finally.

 

“Night,” the other voice answered back.  And then: “If you are Finn,” there was another sigh, “I…”  There was a long pause.  “I’m sorry.”

 

“Me too,” Finn said.

 

**# # # #**

 

Poe awoke on a cold metal slab.  Somewhere down the hall, he could hear screaming.  He squeezed his eyes shut.  His hands balled into fists.  His fear and sympathy were temporarily drowning out his pain but they couldn’t drown out the sounds.  “Stop,” he mumbled.  “Stop.  Please stop.”  He brought his hands up to his ears, rolling onto his side.

 

It hurt.  Everything hurt, but he couldn’t listen to any more screaming.

 

Poe’s eyes were leaking and he felt dirty and gritty and…  Another scream, more ragged this time.  _I’m so sorry, whoever you are._

_So sorry._

 

He closed his eyes and swallowed.

 

He tried to remember how long he’d been in the cell, but the torture could’ve been hours and it could have been days.  And then, they’d brought him back to the cell and _… Finn._

_Was that really Finn?_

_Or another one of their sick tricks?_

 

“Finn,” he croaked out.  Poe rolled off the bed, falling to the ground.  He crawled over to the cell door, his hands shaking, barely able to support his weight.  “Finn?”

 

There was no answer.

 

There was a yell down the hall.

 

Poe closed his eyes.  _Please say I dreamed that.  Please say that’s not him_.  He turned, leaning against the cell door, breathing heavily.  “It wasn’t him,” he murmured to himself. 

 

“It wasn’t him.”

 

He kept repeating it until he fell asleep.

 

**# # # #**

 

Poe awoke in time to see the troopers dragging a body into the cell next to his.  He hadn’t gotten a good look, but in his gut, he knew it was Finn.

 

As soon as the troopers were gone, he pushed himself up.  He could feel fresh blood on his shirt, but didn’t dare look down to investigate.

 

He swallowed.  “Finn?”

 

_Come on, buddy.  Wake up and answer me._

 

“Finn, buddy?”

 

_Please._

 

“Finn,” he said, louder, and then he immediately started coughing. 

 

There was a noise in the other cell.  Someone coughing and spitting.

 

“Finn, that you?”

 

“Yeah.  Just a sec,” Finn said.

 

Poe closed his eyes and said a quick prayer of thanks.

 

It took a few moments before he heard Finn again.  “So, you believe it’s me now?”

 

“Sorry,” Poe said.  “They were…”  He squeezed his eyes, trying hard not to remember too much.  “They called one of the troopers FN-2187.  Had him…”  Poe swallowed.  “Just didn’t know what to believe there for a while.”

 

Finn leaned against the side of the cell, staring out into the hall, tears streamed down his face.  “I’m sorry.”

 

“Yeah," Poe said, squeezing his eyes shut.  He involuntarily winced as he remembered a stun baton and cruel laughter as he jerked against his restraints.  _Stop.  Stop.  Please maker, just stop._ His voice was strained as he forced himself to ask, "How are you?”

 

Finn gave a mirthless chuckle.  “Great.”

 

“Right.  Stupid question.”  He leaned his head back against the cool, damp wall, tears leaking from his eyes.  “You know how long we’ve been here?”

 

“At least a day or two.  I blacked out, so…”

 

“Yeah, I’m not sure either,” Poe said.  He started shaking.  “Fuck,” he said.

 

“Poe?”

 

“Yeah, it’s just…”  His whole body was shuddering.  _We’re gonna die here._

 

“Poe?”  Finn knew that being a soldier meant that you didn’t stop feeling fear so much as you learned how to ignore it, but right now, he was terrified.  Poe was always the one full of bravado, the one making jokes.  _Poe, I really need you to keep it together_ , he thought, working his hand through one of the slots in the door, reaching out even though he knew there was no way he could get to the other man.  “Poe?”

 

“Just cold, buddy,” Poe managed.  _And terrified.  And I really want to touch you, know that you’re real._

_Please be real._

 

Finn leaned his head against the door.  He could hear himself wheezing.  _We need to focus, need to come up with a plan and get out of our heads._   “Poe,” he said.  “Tell me about your wounds.”

 

“Finn, I really don’t—”

 

“We need to figure out what we’re physically capable of, Dameron, so we can figure out how we’re getting out of here.”

 

Poe licked his lips.  He knew what Finn was doing, but it beat thinking about his impending death, so he went along with it.  “Cuts and bruises on my head and arms.  Pretty sure they broke a finger or two.  Cuts in my abdomen and on my legs.  Broken rib or two.  Just your standard torture package.”

 

Finn tried not to imagine the state Poe was in.

 

“And you,” Poe asked.

 

“Uhhhhh,” Finn looked down at himself.  “Pretty similar.  I think my ribs are good, but my left eye is swollen and I think they messed up my foot, but otherwise...”

 

Poe nodded, fighting the tears in his eyes.  He cleared his throat.  “Uhhh, so, any great plans?”

 

Finn closed his eyes.  “Try to jump them when they come for us again?”  It was a crap plan and they both knew it.

 

“Sounds great,” Poe said, trying to sound optimistic and failing.  _We’re going to die here_.

 

They sat there for a few minutes in silence before Poe said, “Can I ask you a question?”

 

“Sure,” Finn said.

 

“Why were you so pissed before?

 

“Before?”

 

“During the briefing?”

 

“Oh that.”  Finn let out a long breath.  “You have a tendency to take stupid risks, Dameron.  It pisses me off.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because they’re _stupid_ risks.  And you’re…” Finn couldn’t bring himself to say the truth.  “…my friend.  I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

 

“Fair enough,” Poe said.  He gingerly pulled his legs up towards his body with a groan.  “My therapist says—”

 

“Your therapist?”

 

“Yeah, I have a therapist.  What of it?”

 

“No, that’s great.  I just never would’ve thought…  You never talk about it.”

 

“It’s private.”  Poe took a long breath, trying to focus on anything other than the pain.

 

Finn waited for a moment, “You were about to tell me what your therapist says.”

 

“Oh yeah,” Poe said, trying to ignore a spasm in his back.  “She says that me getting hurt and taking risks, it’s because I don’t think about my own safety.  Like, it’s a tunnel vision thing?  I’m so focused on the mission or on helping my friends, that I forget about the physical consequences.”

 

“Makes sense,” Finn said, remembering what it was like to face Kylo Ren when he thought the bastard had killed Rey.  “I didn’t even think about what he could’ve done to me,” he muttered.

 

“Huh?”

 

“Fighting Ren.  I never stopped to think; I just acted.”

 

“Exactly,” Poe said.  “I’m not trying to get hurt, I’m just…trying to do what has to be done.”

 

Finn leaned back, nodding.  “Still pisses me off.”

 

“Why?”

 

Finn shrugged, trying to find the words.  “I don’t know!”  He hit his hands against the floor. That was a lie.  He knew exactly why.  Finally, he said, “Because I don’t like seeing you hurt.”

 

“I don’t like seeing _you_ hurt, but I don’t get pissy about it.”

 

“No, you just mother hen me to death.”

 

Poe cocked his head to the side, forgetting about the pain for a moment.  He leaned forward.  “I do not,” he said.

 

Finn snorted.  “Yes, you do.  You’re worse than Dr. Kalonia.”  _But truth be told, I kind of like it._

 

“Well…”  Poe wanted a clever retort, but he couldn’t think of one.  “I…”  _I love you._   Poe closed his eyes.  _I can’t tell him that._

_Not here._

_Not now._

 

Poe sighed, “Fine.  I hate it when you’re hurt, okay?”  He leaned back.  “It scares me.”

 

“Yeah,” Finn said.  “Scares me too.”

 

They drifted into silence, both thinking about what awaited them the next time the troopers came back and both wishing they’d told each other the truth a long time ago.

 

Finn leaned his head back against the wall, closing his eyes and praying that they took him first, so he didn’t have to hear what they were going to do to Poe.

 

Poe hugged his legs to himself, hoping it would be quick and that he wouldn’t have to see what they were going to do to Finn.

 

A drip, in a cell down the hall, kept a steady beat as they both got lost in their thoughts.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, yeah (looks down sheepishly)...I might have made a moodboard for this chapter, which you can find [here.](https://cha-llamala.tumblr.com/post/166710114323/a-drip-in-a-cell-down-the-hall-kept-a-steady)


	3. Leap of Faith

 

 

They were quiet a long time before Poe said, “Finn?”

 

“Yeah,” Finn’s voice was rough, like he’d been crying.

 

Poe closed his eyes.  The thought of Finn crying was…  _Kriff._   “Uh, what do you think our chances are here?”

 

“Honestly?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Not good,” Finn said.

 

“Yeah.  Figured,” Poe said.  His whole body slumped against the wall.  He was too tired to cry anymore.  He was too tired to care.  Finn sighed in his cell.  “I really wish I could kiss you,” Poe mumbled.

 

Finn blinked.  “What?”

 

“Nothing.”  _Kriff.  Did I just say that out loud?_

 

“No,” Finn said, moving closer to the door.  “What did you say?”

 

“Nothing.  Forget it.”  Poe shook his head and ran both hands over his face.  _Keep it together, Dameron._

 

“Dameron, if we’re about to die in here, then—”

 

“I said I wish I could kiss you,” Poe blurted out.  “I’ve wanted to kiss you for a long time now.”  He let his head fall back against the cell wall.  “So there.  Happy?”

 

Finn smiled.  “Actually, yeah.”

 

“Wait.”  Poe looked through the slots in the door, wishing he could actually see Finn.  “Yeah?”

 

“I’d love to kiss you too,” Finn said.

 

“Kriff,” Poe said.  “Really?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

 _This can’t be…_   Poe laughed.  “This is turning out to be the single best and worst day of my life.”

 

Finn laughed.  “Right there with you.”

 

Poe sat there for a moment as his entire universe realigned.  _But, I want more than just to kiss you.  I want..._   He closed his eyes.  _Might as well go for it._   “So, uh, this wanting to kiss me thing,” Poe started. 

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Is it—”

 

A door at the far end of the hall hissed open and there was the familiar click of boots on the durasteel floor.

 

“Oh kriff,” Poe said, scrambling back from the door.  _No.  Not now.  Please, not now._

One of the troopers stopped in front of Finn’s cell.“FN-2187?”

 

“My name is Finn.”

 

The trooper outside Finn’s cell nodded to Poe’s cell.  “That one’s Dameron then.”  Three other troopers moved into position so there were two in front of Poe’s door and two in front of Finn’s.

 

“What’s going on,” Poe demanded as his cell door slid open. 

 

One of the troopers said, “You’re slated for execution.  That one is being sent to reconditioning.”

 

Poe started struggling the moment they put their hands on him.  He heard the other troopers leading Finn down the hall and then what sounded like a scuffle.  “Finn,” he screamed.  “Finn!”  He jerked his elbow up as one of the troopers tried to get binders on his wrists and landed a solid hit.  As that one fell back, he shoved the other one, grabbing his blaster and getting in a lucky shot.  The other one reached for his blaster and the two of them shot at the same time.

 

The shot grazed Poe’s side, but the trooper was down.  Poe ran into the hall to see one trooper on the ground and Finn kneeling in front of another with a blaster to his head.  “One more step, Resistance scum, and he dies.”

 

“No, he doesn’t,” Poe said, not moving.  “Because if you do that, you’re gonna piss off a bunch of officers, not to mention Kylo Ren.”  He nodded at Finn.  “You kill him, you’re depriving them of their fun, and we all know what Ren is like when he doesn’t get what he wants.”

 

The trooper faltered, so Finn jerked to the side and elbowed him as Poe took the shot. 

 

The Stormtrooper fell.

 

For a moment, Poe just stood there in shock.  _Did we just do that?_

 

“Poe?”  Finn was digging around in the trooper’s belongings for the key to his binders.  He looked up.  “Poe?  You gotta plan,” Finn asked, as the binders fell off.  “Poe!”

 

Poe jerked back to reality and shook his head.  “Get out of here?”

 

Finn grabbed a blaster.  He stood.  “Sounds good.”

 

The two started running.

 

**# # # #**

 

It was a labyrinthine space, made even worse by the fact that about two minutes after they’d started running, alarms went off. 

 

Currently, Finn and Poe were stuffed into a tiny alcove, waiting as troopers rushed by.  Finn looked down, noticing blood all over the front of Poe’s shirt.  “What,” he hissed.

 

Poe looked down.  “Kinda got shot,” he whispered.

 

Finn looked up at the ceiling.  _Of course, you did_.  “How bad is it?”

 

“Graze,” Poe said.  It wasn’t exactly a lie—Finn didn’t need to know that it had reopened another wound.

 

Finn looked back out into the hall.  “Clear,” he whispered.  The two took off towards a set of doors.  Finn took a deep breath.  “Should we try them?”

 

Poe nodded.  “Don’t have much choice.”

 

The doors opened onto another hallway just as a squadron of Stormtroopers rounded the corner behind them.  “There they are!  Set blasters to stun!”

 

Poe and Finn started running.

 

**# # # #**

 

Finn was laboring to breathe.  For the first several minutes, he’d been high on adrenaline, but that was wearing off and the cold, hard facts of their situation were settling in. 

 

They were both wounded.  The Order knew they had escaped, and they were out of ideas.  Plus, every hall in the blasted base looked the same, so it felt like they were running in circles.  They’d managed to put a little space between them and the squadron of Stormtroopers chasing them, but he knew that their luck wasn’t going to hold out much longer.

 

They ran down another hall and he saw a set of doors at the far end.  They looked like maintenance doors.  _Please, maker, say they are_.  He aimed his blaster and fired at the door’s security mechanism.  It slid open and he pushed Poe through.

 

And suddenly, they were outside.  The air was cold and heavy and Finn started coughing.  He moved to nudge Poe forward when he stopped.

 

The base was perched over some sort of chasm, and they were standing on the edge of it.

 

Poe backed up into a metal wall, taking a deep breath.  “Kriffing hell!  What is this place?”  He looked at Finn, who was pressing buttons, trying to get the door behind them to slide closed. 

 

When it did, he breathed out a sigh and turned to study the landscape.  “Okay, they built this place into the side of a cliff and then over that,” he shrugged, “canyon?  And,” he looked down into the swirling mass of clouds, fog, and gas below, “I have no idea what that is.”

 

“Great,” Poe said.  “Let’s try to avoid it, then.”

 

Finn nodded to a small ledge that ran along the cliffside on their right.  “Come on.”

 

**# # # #**

 

As best Finn could figure, they had been in one of the sub-basements when they’d broken out because most of the base hovered above them, covered in antennas and strange protrusions.  The whole thing creaked overhead as Poe and Finn tried to navigate the tiny bit of space between the canyon and a metal wall supporting the base.  

 

“Does it ever end,” Poe asked.

 

Finn shook his head.  There looked to be construction ahead—lots of bars and pipes hanging out over the canyon, rigged with gears and pulleys.  “Maybe there?”

 

“Sounds good,” Poe said, panting.  _Sounds like a lot more pain, but we don’t really have a choice, do we?_

 

Finn spared him a look.  Poe was pale, obviously straining to keep up.  Finn bit his lip.  A part of him wanted to slow down, to let Poe rest, but if they did that, they were going to die.

 

He took a deep breath, realizing that he was running on empty too.  Finn winced as his left foot hit the ground.  _Something is broken there_ , he thought, refusing to favor it or let Poe know that he was hurt.

 

Poe glanced over.  _His foot is hurt._   If he had felt better, he would’ve mentioned it, but Poe was focused on his breathing, every breath burning more than the last—the cool air prickling his lungs as he sucked it in.

 

“There,” Finn said.  There was a scaffolding going up.  “Maybe we could get up and then across that catwalk at the top and it might get us over this wall.  What do you think?”

 

Poe nodded, struggling to breathe.  “Sounds great.”

 

Finn frowned.  Poe did not look up for climbing, but they didn’t have a choice.  “Okay then.”  He started jogging to the scaffolding, Poe right behind him.  They started up. 

 

“Good,” Poe managed, grunting as he pulled himself up.  “Great,” he muttered.  _Nothing wrong here at all_.  He noticed Finn was trying only to use his right foot.  _We are so fucking kriffed_ , he thought.  He drug in a long breath.  _Please, maker, just let him get away.  Even if I can’t make it, help him._ He paused and took another long breath.

 

“Poe,” Finn hissed.  He reached down and helped Poe up to a small metal walkway.  After giving Poe a few seconds to catch his breath, Finn pointed up and they both started to climb to the next level.  The scaffolding started to sway.

 

“Not sure this is secure,” Poe said, groaning as he pulled himself further up.

 

“No,” Finn said, ignoring the pain shooting up his left leg.  Tears were filling his eyes.  He tried not to look down at the canyon below them.  He got to the next level and reached out for Poe.  As he got Poe up, the entire scaffolding started to tilt.

 

“Kriffing hell,” Finn yelled.  The structure swayed and groaned under their weight.  Both men knew it was going to collapse.  Finn looked around desperately and spotted a bar, attached to a crane, hanging out over the canyon.  “Bar,” he yelled.

 

They both jumped for the bar at the same time and as their hands grabbed at the metal, the bar swung further out over the foggy mess below.

 

“Wooooah,” Poe yelled.  “Not what I was expecting.”

 

The scaffolding crashed down into the fog below them and after a moment, they heard the sounds of metal clunking against metal in a terrific discordant symphony. 

 

 _Well, now we’re fucked._   Finn grunted, trying to pull himself up, but all his strength was gone.  “Think we can swing this back over?”  He nodded to the sliver of ground between the base and the cliffside.

 

Poe tried to look back over his shoulder.  “No.”  He closed his eyes, sucking in a long, deep breath.  “We’d have better luck trying to swing around, see if we can get to one of those antennas.”  He looked at Finn.  “You up for that?”

 

 _Not really._   “You?”

 

 _No._   Poe shook his head.  “I’m probably gonna slip off this soon anyway.”  He tried to flash Finn a smile.

 

Finn grimaced.  “Let’s try anyway.” 

 

They both started pumping their legs forward and backward and the bar did move, but it kept moving forward and backward.  After about a dozen pumps, Poe yelled out, “Okay, stop.”  He was gasping.  “I’ve gotta…  I need…a second… I can’t…”  He closed his eyes, his head falling backward.

 

“Poe?”  Finn tried to get a good look at the other man but his eyes just wanted to close.  His arms were screaming.  He finally panted out, “Poe, look at me.”

 

“It just hurts so much,” Poe mumbled.

 

“Yeah,” Finn said, feeling the pull in his chest, his muscles burning with the strain.

 

Poe shook his head.  “I’m fine.”  His eyes fell shut.

 

“You’re lying,” Finn said.

 

“Yeah, I am.”  Poe looked down.  “Didn’t really want to die like this.  Not here.”  He glanced at Finn.  “Not now.”

 

Finn wanted to tell him to stop thinking that way, but he felt his hands slipping off the cold, wet metal. 

 

“Finn,” Poe said, his voice wavering, “buddy, ummmm….”

 

Finn’s eyes were leaking.  He squeezed them shut, trying to drag in another breath.  He could hear the alarm in Poe’s voice as he said, “Finn, do not let go.  Do you hear me?  DO NOT LET GO.”

 

Finn grabbed the bar tighter.  “Poe, I’m sorry,” he said.  “I shoulda told you a long time ago.”

 

“What?  Should’ve told me?  Focus.  Just hold on and we’ll get out of this.”

 

“I should’ve told you I love you,” Finn said.  He sucked in a large breath and looked over at Poe, painfully aware that his fingers were still slipping.  “I’m sorry, Poe,” he said.  “I love you.”  His fingers slipped from the bar and he started to fall.

 

Poe yelled, reaching out.  He caught Finn’s hand with a scream, pain shooting up the arm still grasping the bar.  “FUCK!”

 

Finn wailed as his body jerked in Poe’s grasp.  After the flash of pain subsided, he stared up at the other man.  “What in the hell are you doing,” he yelled.  “Let go of me!”

 

“No way in hell I’m doin’ that!”

 

“Let go of me!  That’s an order!”

 

Poe’s eyes crinkled as he smiled.  “I outrank you.”

 

For a moment, Finn got lost in the soft look in Poe’s eyes, but then he saw fear spike in them as Poe’s fingers started slipping. 

 

Every inch of Poe’s body hurt, but he refused to let go of Finn.

 

“Let go,” Finn begged.  “Please.  Don’t die for me.”

 

Poe looked down at him.  “I love you too.”

 

Finn’s eyes flared wider for a split second before he closed them.  “Then let me go.  Please.  You can’t do this.”  He opened his eyes, tears glittering in them.  “Please, Poe.”

 

“Not gonna happen, Finn.  You jump, I jump.  That’s how this works.”

 

Finn looked up at where Poe’s hand was slipping off the bar.  “I love you,” he said.

 

“I love you too.”

 

Poe’s hand slipped off the bar.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I might have made [a moodboard for this chapter too.](https://cha-llamala.tumblr.com/post/166746385573/he-felt-his-hands-slipping-off-the-cold-wet)


	4. The Cave

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to the SWWA who helped me figure out a bit of this chapter.

 

 

 

Poe groaned as he came to.  _I always thought the afterlife would be far less squishy._

 

_And that it wouldn’t smell like week-old bantha fodder._

 

 _Beggars can’t be choosers, I guess_.  He tried to smile and then realized he was in a tremendous amount of pain.  He forced his eyes open and started coughing.  He looked up into the pink and purple haze swirling above him.

 

_Did I actually make it?_

 

There was a groan beside him.  “Poe,” Finn choked out.  “Dameron?”

 

 _Oh thank the maker, YES!_   “Yeah,” Poe managed.  “I’m here.”

 

“You hurt?”

 

Poe snorted. 

 

“Yeah, me too.”

 

Poe could hear splashing.  _NO._

_NO!  Not after all of that.  No, this story does not end with us getting caught again_.  He tried to push himself up, but his hands slipped and he fell back into the gunk, whatever it was.

 

There was suddenly a very dirty, very small humanoid face with bright blue eyes looking down at him.  “Hey,” he managed.

 

There was another set of footsteps and then a woman leaned over him, a blaster pointed at his nose.  “Who are you?”

 

“Poe Dameron, Resistance.”

 

“Finn, also Resistance.”

 

“What in the kriff are you doing here?”

 

Poe groaned.  “We kinda fell off the…”  He pointed up.

 

The child looked up.  “You fell out of the base,” she asked.

 

“Yeah,” Finn said.  “Trying to escape.”  He groaned as he pushed himself up.

 

The woman pulled her gun away.  “You really Resistance?”

 

“Yes, ma’am,” Finn said.

 

She nodded.  “Come on, then.”

 

Poe felt the girl grab his shoulder to help him sit up.  “Thanks,” he muttered, pushing against the swampy ground.  He saw Finn doing the same.  “How’s your foot?”

 

“Good enough,” Finn said, limping after the woman.

 

“Sure,” Poe said, trying to jog after them.

 

**# # # #**

 

The woman took them to a small village on the edge of the canyon.  About fifteen humans came running out of small clay houses.  A general panic was rising. 

 

“The Order is going to come looking for them!”

 

“They can’t stay here!”

 

“They’ll kill us all!”

 

Poe took a deep breath, wincing at the pain in his ribs.  “Look, just tell us the quickest way to get away and we’ll—”

 

The woman rolled her eyes.  “They’re injured and they’re Resistance.  I’m going to take them to the caves and hide them there.  Someone find Tak-Mala and send him to us.”  She nodded at Poe and Finn and they followed her.  They entered a cave system at the edge of the canyon, winding deeper and deeper inside.  The woman held up a glow stick but even with that little bit of light, both Poe and Finn felt compelled to hold onto walls as they walked further and further down.

 

The woman knew her path—never once did she hesitate at a fork or pause—and soon, they arrived in a small chamber.  The woman walked over to a table and lit a lantern.  The space was outfitted with some cots and medical supplies.  “You should be safe here.  Even if they find the caves, they’ll get lost.  Just try to stay quiet,” she said.

 

Finn nodded.  “Thanks, ma’am.”

 

“I had family in the Hosnian system,” she said.  She began rifling through a crate, pulling out clothes.  “These should fit you.”

 

There was a noise at the other end of the chamber and Poe and Finn spun to see a young man come jogging in.  “These the Resistance fighters?”

 

The woman nodded.

 

“I’m Tak-Mala.  I’m the healer for the village,” he said.  “Let me take a look at you.”

 

Poe and Finn exchanged a look.  Finally, Poe said, “Broken foot beats broken ribs.  You go first.”

 

Finn wanted to argue, but Tak-Mala was already motioning for him to get up on a small table in the corner of the room.  While he did, the woman offered Poe a basin of water and a rag.

 

“Don’t think I caught your name,” Poe said.

 

“Esse-Mala,” she said.

 

“Thanks, Esse-Mala, we appreciate it.”

 

She smiled and started helping Poe with his shoes.

 

Eventually, Tak-Mala had seen both of them and patched them both up as well as he could.  They were both relatively clean and in new clothes.  The healer ordered them to rest, and Esse-Mala promised to send one of her children with food in a few hours. 

 

Poe and Finn settled into their cots and the other two left, turning the lantern down low.

 

When they could no longer hear Tak-Mala’s and Esse-Mala’s footsteps echoing through the chamber, Poe whispered, “Finn?”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Thanks for not dying.”

 

Finn chuckled.  “And thanks for grabbing me.”

 

“Sure,” Poe said.

 

They laid there a few more minutes before Finn whispered, “Did you mean it?  What you said up there?”

 

“Every word,” Poe said.  “You?”

 

“Every word.”

 

Poe smiled.  “Good.”

 

“Yeah.  Good.”

 

“Night, Finn.”

 

“Night, Poe.”

 

**# # # #**

 

For the next few days, the routine was basically the same.  Some of the village children would bring food and drink.  Poe and Finn would sit up long enough to eat and have their bandages changed or perhaps do a quick wipe down.  Then, they’d sleep.

 

On the fourth day, Esse-Mala brought word that one of the villagers had been able to contact the Resistance, but that it would probably be another few days before a rescue could be mounted.

 

By then, both Poe and Finn were feeling well enough that boredom was starting to creep in.  They both had to remain quiet, just in case the Order showed up, and they were both technically recovering, but in near darkness, with little to do, the two of them quickly grew restless.

 

Which was why, by day five, they were whispering back and forth to each other.

 

**# # # #**

 

The children had just brought their mid-day meal and had left the lantern turned up a bit.  Finn sat up on his cot—today, there was some sort of fruit jam with bread.  He dipped some of the bread into the jam and actually moaned as he took a bite.

 

“Finn,” Poe hissed.  “You can’t do that.”

 

“Do what?”

 

“Make pornographic sounds.  It’s distracting.”  Poe tore off a piece of bread and refused to look over at Finn.

 

Finn chuckled.  “Try the fruit.  It’s delicious.”

 

Poe dipped his bread in and took a bite.  “Kriff,” he groaned.

 

“See,” Finn said.

 

Poe shook his head, glancing up at Finn, who caught his eye and winked.

 

“Finn,” Poe warned.

 

“What?”

 

Poe rolled his eyes and refocused on his food.  A few moments later, he heard Finn say, “Crap.”  He looked up to see Finn licking some of the jam off of his fingers.

 

“Oh come on,” Poe hissed.  “That’s not fair.”

 

Finn smiled, his thumb still perched next to his lips.

 

“What?”

 

“Oh, do not play coy with me,” Poe said. 

 

Finn tried to shoot Poe the most innocent look he could muster.  “No, what?”

 

“Oh, that’s how you want to be, huh?”  Poe grabbed his tray and set it on the ground in front of him.  He then sat back on his cot and ran a hand through his hair, letting his eyes fall closed for just a second before he opened them and looked over at Finn through his eyelashes.

 

Finn was frozen, staring at Poe.  “Damn,” he muttered.

 

Poe’s eyes scrunched up as he laughed.  “Two can play at that game, is all I’m saying.”

 

Finn put his tray on his cot and stood.  He slowly hobbled over.

 

“What are you doing, Finn?”

 

Finn stood in-between Poe’s legs.  “Who says it’s a game, Dameron?”

 

He held his hand out and when Poe didn’t flinch away, he slowly carded a hand through Poe’s curls.

 

“Kriff,” Poe groaned.  His eyes fell closed and he leaned into Finn’s hand.

 

Finn’s knees nearly gave out as Poe started purring.  “Okay, that is hot.”

 

Poe opened his eyes.  “Why are you still standing there?”

 

Finn leaned over and whispered, “I have no idea.”  He brushed his lips against Poe’s.

 

Poe grabbed the back of Finn’s head and pulled him into a kiss.

 

Finn soon pushed Poe down onto the cot, dotting kisses along Poe’s cheeks and neck.  He knelt on the cot, but as he shifted his weight, he felt Poe flinch.  “Ow!”

 

“Kriff, sorry!”

 

“No, it’s just…”  Poe shifted and then said, “There.  Good.”

 

Finn leaned back in for another kiss.

 

Poe moved his hand to cup Finn’s face, brushing his fingers across Finn’s cheek.  Finn flinched back.  “Ow!”

 

“Oh, face.  Sorry!”

 

“No, it’s…  Just avoid that cheek?”

 

“Yeah, of course,” Poe said, sliding his hand to the back of Finn’s head.  He pulled Finn in for a long, languid kiss.  The two of them lost all sense of time.

 

Poe began pressing his body into Finn’s.

 

Finn shifted and immediately felt pain sear up his left leg.  “OW!  KRIFF!”

 

“Crap.  Sorry.  Uh, what do I?”

 

“Move your leg.  No, the other leg.  Yeah.”  Finn let out a long breath.

 

“You okay,” Poe asked.

 

Finn leaned his forehead into Poe.  “This isn’t gonna work, Dameron.”

 

He could feel Poe’s smile against his collarbone.  “Not with that attitude, mister.”

 

Finn laughed.  He leaned back to look into Poe’s eyes.  “You really wanna try this?”

 

Poe scratched his fingers through Finn’s hair.  “We don’t have to have sex, but…”  He looked down.  “Could we just…hold each other?”

 

Finn nodded, moving around until he could comfortably fit Poe half on him and half next to him.  Poe let one of his fingers dance across Finn’s chest, eventually working it under his shirt.  He started humming.

 

Finn chuckled.  “We’re supposed to be quiet.”

 

“Well, you’re inspiring,” Poe said.

 

Finn shook his head, pulling Poe towards him to kiss the top of Poe’s head.

 

“Well, you are,” Poe said.

 

“What am I gonna do with you, Dameron?”

 

“Anything you damn well want.”

 

Finn raised an eyebrow at that.  “Well, when you say it like that,” Finn said, tugging on Poe’s shirt and pulling the pilot up on top of him…

 

**# # # #**

 

Snap and Iolo were following the woman down a winding path in virtual darkness.  They’d managed to find a way to jam the radar on the Order’s base and had made it to the tiny village a day earlier than expected.

 

As soon as they’d landed and identified themselves, a woman rushed forward, grabbing their arms and pulling them towards the entrance to a cave system.  She had taken off at a near run, aware that the Order would more than likely see the small transport the two had arrived in if it stayed more than a few minutes.

 

As they jogged along behind her, only a small glow stick lighting their path, Iolo quipped, “You couldn’t find a darker, twistier cave to hide them in?”

 

The woman ignored him.

 

Snap grunted, “If one of us doesn’t slip and fall, it’ll be a kriffing miracle.”

 

The group suddenly heard a noise.  It sounded like an animal moaning in pain.  All three stopped running.  “What was that,” Snap asked.

 

The woman shook her head.

 

The noise echoed through the cavern again.

 

“Is there anything else down here with us?”

 

The woman said, “Shouldn’t be.”  They could see the fear in her eyes.

 

“Maybe we hurry then,” Snap said, and the three took off again.

 

As they made it into the chamber, the woman stopped short, exclaiming, “Oh dear!”

 

Both Snap and Iolo raised their weapons until they both heard a very familiar throaty laugh.  The two walked around the woman to see two pairs of feet sticking out from under a blanket on one of the cots.

 

“Oh kriff, Finn,” Poe moaned.

 

“I do not get paid enough for this,” Snap said.

 

“We don’t get paid at all, so we definitely don’t get paid enough for this,” Iolo said.

 

The cot stopped rocking.  Slowly the blanket moved and Poe’s head popped out.  “Snap?  Iolo?”

 

“In the flesh, Commander.”

 

“Uhhhhhh….”

 

“Kriff,” they could hear Finn whisper.

 

“Why don’t we give you a minute,” Snap said, tugging on Iolo’s shoulder and turning around.

 

They could hear a lot of cursing and shuffling and about a minute later, Finn said, “We’re good.”

 

Snap and Iolo turned around with the biggest grins either had ever worn.

 

“How much to keep your mouths shut,” Poe asked.

 

“There aren’t enough credits in the galaxy,” Iolo said.

 

Esse-Mala couldn’t help her smile, but then she remembered the need for haste.  She said, “You need to leave.”

 

“Yeah, right,” Snap said.  “You two good to go?”

 

“I think we already know the answer to that,” Iolo mutter.

 

“Sure,” Poe said, ignoring him.  He looked to Finn.

 

“My foot is fine, Poe,” Finn said.  He turned to the woman.  “Thank you.  And please thank Tak-Mala for us.”

 

“Of course,” she said.  With that, she turned and started back through the cave.  The four men worked hard to keep up.

 

“So,” Snap said, as they wound back up to the surface.  “Should we talk about that payment plan now or…”

 

“Payment plan,” Finn asked.

 

“Keeping our mouths shut is going to cost you, big deal,” Iolo said.

 

“Kriff,” Finn said.  “I don’t suppose you’d take a favor.”

 

Iolo and Snap roared with laughter.

 

“How much to make sure you two just tell the truth with no embellishments,” Poe said as they came out into the light.

 

Snap laughed.  “Now, where would the fun in that be?”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow, the final chapter!
> 
> Oh, and yeah, there's [one final moodboard.](https://cha-llamala.tumblr.com/post/166780345313/poes-eyes-scrunched-up-as-he-laughed-two-can)


	5. The Report

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short little coda...

 

 

 

 

“Kriff,” Finn said, staring at the datapad. 

 

“What,” Poe asked from the bed.

 

Finn sighed and turned.  “I don’t know what to write next.”

 

“What do you mean?  It’s a report.  You write what happened next.”

 

Finn raised an eyebrow.  “Sure. Okay,” he said, pretending to type it out.  “We fell into what turned out to be a boggy marsh.  For some miraculous reason, nothing was too badly broken.  Some sympathetic locals found us and tended to our wounds while keeping us hidden.  Then, while we were waiting for pickup…”

 

“Yes,” Poe asked with a smile.

 

“You really want me to tell the General exactly what we did next?”

 

“I’m guessing she has a pretty good idea, given the fact that Snap and Iolo have big kriffing mouths.”

 

Finn blushed, hiding his face behind the datapad.  “It’s still one thing for her to hear rumors and gossip and another for me to write it in a report.”

 

Poe got up and looked at the datapad.  “Well, you can certainly write about the locals and how they helped us and then…”  He bit his lip.  “I don’t know.  Say that we…”  Poe looked up.  “What’s a euphemism for shagged like lothcats?”

 

“Do lothcats really have a lot of sex?  I think you’re thinking of something else?  Wampas maybe?  Or those fuzzy little things we saw on Naboo?”

 

“Fine, not lothcats, but still...” 

 

“And we never actually got to the sex part,” Finn said.  “Kind of got interrupted.”

 

“Yeah,” Poe said.  _And we haven’t talked about it since._ Poe ran his teeth over his bottom lip.  “How about, _after we recovered from our injuries, we spent a significant amount of time focused on furthering the interpersonal relations of Resistance staff_?”

 

Finn snorted.

 

“You got anything better?”

 

Finn shook his head and started typing.  “She’s gonna know that we had sex.”

 

“Tried to have sex.”  Poe leaned in, his head hovering over Finn’s shoulder.  “And it was worth it.”

 

Finn laughed.  “Definitely.  But you’re still the one that’s going to explain if she has any questions.”

 

“Finn, darling, how many euphemisms do you think she had to use for all her time on the Millennium Falcon?”

 

Finn groaned.  “Please don’t put that picture in my head.”

 

He hit send on the report and turned to Poe.  “Okay, that’s done.” He eyed Poe up and down.  “And Dr. Kalonia cleared you for duty?”

 

Poe nodded.  “Good as new.”

 

Finn raised an eyebrow. 

 

“Fine.  Good enough to throw back into action.”

 

Finn nodded.

 

“And you?”

 

Finn said, “Cleared this morning while you were meeting with the pilots.”  He frowned.  “And I’m headed out tomorrow morning.”

 

“Me too.” 

 

“You have any mission prep to do?”

 

“Already did it,” Poe said.

 

“Me too,” Finn said. 

 

The two of them stood there, hyper-aware of what wasn’t being said.

 

Finn licked his lips.

 

Poe carded a hand through his hair.

 

“One of us is gonna have to get this conversation started,” Finn finally said.

 

“Yeah,” Poe said.  “I know.”  He sighed and waved at Finn to join him on the bed.  He walked over and flopped back onto it.

 

Finn shuffled over and laid back next to Poe.  “So, I guess it’s not gonna do me any good to tell you to be careful?”

 

“I’m gonna try, but I can’t promise you I won’t do that laser focus thing and…”  He scooted over, turning to face Finn.  “Look, we’re both gonna try to stay safe, but…”

 

“But this is war and that’s a fool’s promise,” Finn said, looking up at the ceiling.  He sighed.  “Uh, so we never really talked about…”

 

Poe tensed.  “No, we didn’t.”

 

“I just…I didn’t want you to feel any pressure or anything.  I know that people say things in extreme circumstances and…”  Finn pressed his lips together. 

 

“Are you saying you want out,” Poe said, the panic clear in his voice.  He pushed up on his elbow to look down at Finn.

 

“No,” Finn said, refusing to meet Poe’s eyes, “but if you just wanted to keep this casual or if you wanted out…”

 

“I am so far from casual where you’re concerned,” Poe said.  He ducked his head and blushed.

 

Finn smiled.  _That’s what I fell in love with_ , he thought, trying to memorize the way the skin crinkled next to Poe’s eyes when he was being bashful and sweet.

 

Poe looked at Finn, catching him staring.  His smile got broader.  “So, we’re doing this?”

 

Finn nodded.  “Yeah.” His smile almost instantly fell.   _But we’re both leaving tomorrow_. 

 

“What?”

 

“It’s the middle of a war,” Finn said.  “And I just…”  He sighed. 

 

Poe reached over, letting his fingertips play across Finn’s cheek.  Finn’s eyes fell shut.  “Look, I’d rather have a few hours with you than not,” Poe said.  He pulled Finn closer, kissing the top of his head.  “We’re gonna get hurt and,” he swallowed hard, “there’s no guarantee that either of us will make it out of this thing alive, but…”

 

“Better to go for it,” Finn said.  He ran a hand across Poe’s chest, thankful that at least for that moment, Poe was real and solid and alive and out of any danger.

 

“Exactly.”

 

Finn thought for a moment.  “Fine,” he said.  “I’m in.”

 

Poe smiled.  “Good, because you jump, I jump, Finn.  Anywhere.  Anytime.”

 

Finn brushed his lips across Poe’s and whispered, “Well, then, I’m jumping…”

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for reading! I hope you enjoyed it!

**Author's Note:**

> Many thanks to the SWWA and all of their support over the past few months!
> 
> And thank you for reading!
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are especially appreciated.


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